Road to Loudwire Music Festival, Day Three: The GWARbar in Richmond

The inaugural edition of Loudwire Music Festival is set for June 26-28, 2015, at Grand Junction, Colorado. Ahead of the fest, we’re hitting the road in a 2016 Kia Sorento, traveling the states and finding new adventures as we make our way from New York City to Grand Junction. Where will we go? What will we see? Who will we run into? Follow along right here at Loudwire to find out, and make sure to keep an eye on #RoadToLoudwire on Twitter and Instagram.

We left D.C. early Wednesday morning (June 17) and hit the road for a pretty quick jaunt to Richmond, Virginia. As we entered the city limits, we were proud to have Lamb of God's latest tune, "512," blasting -- and we have to admit, the Sorento's Clari-Fi sound system handled the brutal tune with ease.

Oh, and if you ever need to pay tolls, take a lesson on how to do it from my co-pilot, Mr. Steve:

Our first stop in Richmond was a somber one; Hollywood Cemetery sits on more than 130 acres and is one of the most historic graveyards in the country. It's home to two presidents and several Confederate generals -- and there's even talk of Gwar building a monument to memorialize the late, great Dave Brockie in the cemetery.

Following Hollywood Cemetery, we headed toward the West End of the city to check out McCormack's Whisky Grill at Regency Square. Why did we pick this particular restaurant for lunch? Simple: Lamb of God drummer Chris Adler co-owns it!

The rest of the afternoon was filled with record stores: BK Music, Plan 9 Music, Deep Groove and Vinyl Conflict. The latter specialized in metal, punk and hardcore -- and was stacked with wax from local bands. We can't wait to spin our copy of Paranoid Messby Richmond's Government Warning.

As much fun as we had today, the undeniable highlight came around dinnertime at a little establishment known as the GWARbar. Inconspicuous looking from the outside, once you set foot inside, you're immediately transported to Gwar's twisted, terrifying world. Blood splattered on the floor, winged eyes flying from the ceiling ... and a savage menu to match.

As if the atmosphere and food weren't enough, the joint exclusively had metal blasting from its speakers. Our road trip is still in the beginning stages, but we don't know how we're going to top the GWARbar in Richmond.